Trivia / The Simpsons S 9 E 13 The Joy Of Sect

• Distanced from Current Events: The script was written in 1997, at roughly the same time that the members of the Heaven's Gate cult committed mass suicide. The writers noticed strange parallels between the first draft and Heaven's Gate, including the belief in the arrival of a spaceship and the group's members wearing matching clothes and odd sneakers. Because of these coincidences, several elements of the episode were changed so that it would be more sensitive in the wake of the suicides.
• Edited for Syndication: When the episode airs anywhere other than Fox and on DVD, the scene where Burns and Smithers brainstorm a logo for his new religion is always cut, along with the followup gag of Lenny expressing his love for Special K.
• Inspiration for the Work: David Mirkin conceived the episode after hearing a radio show about the history of cults whilst driving home one night.
• Reality Subtext: Nancy Cartwright is a member of the Church of Scientology. Bart's line, "Church, cult. Cult, church. So, we'll get bored someplace else on Sunday. Does this really affect our day-to-day lives?" is a subtle burn against Scientology (and organized religion in general) — one that apparently didn't cause any backlash from the Church of Scientology (unlike what happened with the South Park episode "Trapped in the Closet").
• What Could Have Been: Originally, this episode was supposed to be about Lisa joining the Church of Scientology, but, the Simpsons writers got cold feet to mock them, so they made the Movementarians a mix of other cults (along with the Church of Scientology) and have Homer swayed by them. It would not be until Season 13 when the show actually got an episode where Lisa converts to another religion.

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